Steelers QB Mason Rudolph got rocked last season in Cleveland. Can he guide Pittsburgh to a win this time around?
No matter what side of the Mason Rudolph fence you’re on, there’s nothing Steelers Nation would rather see than revenge for Helmetgate with a win in Cleveland.
Sure, the chances of the Pittsburgh Steelers beating the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium with reserves starting are slim-to-none. But that doesn’t change head coach Mike Tomlin’s goal of pulling off a win.
Does Rudolph, who is 5-3 as a starter, have what it takes to pull off a win in Cleveland? If history is any indication, no. In the 21-7 loss last November, Rudolph took four sacks, fumbled, and tossed four picks to one touchdown.
Sunday will be Rudolph’s first start since his Week 12 third-quarter benching in Cincinnati last season. Tomlin benched him after the first drive, in favor of Devlin “Duck” Hodges, citing that the Steelers needed a spark and “Mason wasn’t doing enough.”
We’ll get a chance to see how far Rudolph has come since then. Certainly, his completion versus the Browns in Week 6 and 2-for-3 in Dallas was not enough to feel confident about Rudolph’s chances on Sunday.
It seems odd that Tomlin would tip his hand to Cleveland and announce the decision to start Rudolph over Ben Roethlisberger so early in the week. Perhaps it’s an attempt to instill confidence in the third-year QB? Either way, Rudolph is getting first-team reps in practice this week, as he has every Wednesday this season. He’ll need all work he can get.
